Summary
This article describes how to set the due date on Invoices. The due date does not affect when billing occurs the date merely sets when an invoice on an account is due.
If an invoice is due (the due date is today's date or a past date) the Account will show the invoice amount added to the 'Balance Due' field on the left sidebar under the "Current Account" heading. Due dates set in the future (or not set at all) will not be calculated towards the Balance Due (as shown in the image below)
A due date can be generated in multiple ways, either through Credit Ratings or using a Bill Group.
Credit Rating Configuration
Click on the Setup tab
Under the section Accounting select Credit Ratings and you will be presented with the Credit Ratings table
From here you can edit or add Credit Ratings. The 'Sort Order' determines the order in which items will appear in pick lists (lowest number at the top with zero "0" being the common default)
In the above case the 'Default' Credit Rating is setup with a Term of +30. Terms are explained below:
Terms: Terms will dictate the due date on Invoices. The due date is calculated at the time the invoice is closed using a simple formula, the Invoice Date (defined during the Bill Run) plus whatever the Credit Rating Terms are set to. Alternatively the due date can also be set to a specific day of the month. These two Term options are explained below.
Plus Terms: setting a Term of "+30" will set the due date 30 days from the Invoice Date (NOT the Invoice Close, Invoice Sent or Invoice Created Dates). You can also use this option to set the Due Date on Receipt by setting the plus term to zero (+0).
Set Date Terms: setting a Term of "10" will set the due date on the 10th day of the month after the current date. For example if the Invoice Close Date is on January 1st, the Due Date will be January 10th however, if the Invoice is Closed on January 11th, the Due Date will be February 10th.
Bill Group Configuration
To apply due dates to invoices using the Bill Group Configuration
Load the Setup tab
Under the section Accounting select Bill Group and you will be presented with the following screen
What do these fields mean? To see a full definitions list please visit: Bill Group Configuration
The fields that we have to pay attention to within the context of this article are defined below:
Invoice Date Process Type - defines the way in which you require the system to assign the invoicedate (As Is, Invoice Closed Date, User Bill Day). See the Bill Group Configuration article for details)
Invoice Due Date Type - this defines the method with which EngageIP determines how to set the due date on an invoice. If 'Invoice Closed Date' is selected, the closed date of the invoice (the day on which it's closed) will be used to calculate the due date along with the terms specified in credit ratings for that customer account. If 'Invoice Date' is selected, EngageIP will calculate the due date from the invoicedate. As an example of the 'Invoice Date' method: if today is June 24th, 2011, and you set the invoicedate manually to January 15th, 2011, and the credit rating terms are +30, the due date using 'InvoiceDate' configuration will be February 14, 2011 (Jan 15 + 30 days). If the first method is used, the due date would be based on the example, July 24th (Close date of June 24th plus 30 days)
Notice: it is important to remember that the Credit Rating can adversely affect whatever is configured in the Bill Group. ALWAYS ensure that the Credit Rating Configuration matches what you want in the Bill Group
Test Scenarios
Below we will list a few examples on how the Credit Rating and Bill Group work together to form due dates based on their settings.
Example 1: If you perform a Bill Run on the 20th of the month and you want the Invoice Date to be the 1st of the following month, these are the settings that you would require:
Ensure that within the Credit Rating, the Credit Term is set to '1". As previously described, setting the Term to "1" sets the date to the first of every month.
Within the Bill Group, make sure of the following setting
Invoice Due Date Type = Invoice Date
Example 2: If you perform a Bill Run on the 10th of the month and you want the Invoice Date to be 5 days later, so the 15th, you would configure these settings:
Ensure that within the Credit Rating you choose either Credit Term of +5 or 15. In this case, since the Bill Run is on the 10th, a Credit Term of +5 or 15 would be the same date, the 15th of the month
Within the Bill Group, make sure of the following setting
Invoice Due Date Type = Invoice Date
Manually Setting an Invoice Due Date
It is possible to set or clear the invoice due date, simply follow the steps below:
Load the proper account in the AdminPortal
Click on the Invoices tab
Locate the proper cell under the Due column for the invoice you wish to change the due date on
Click on the field and you can enter a new date (MM/DD/YYYY format) or select a date from the calendar
Note: you clear the text box to specify no due date for the invoice
When finished click enter and the new Due date will be set
Setting No Due Date on New/Reopened Invoices
A setting introduced in EngageIP 8.5.19.0 allows you to have no due date defined for all newly opened or reopened invoices. This is useful if you want the balance due to accurately reflect that billing has been run and the due date has been reached (invoice date + terms).
For more information on see the 'Set Due Date on Open Invoice' description on the EngageIP Configuration Page Overview article